Publisher’s Note: SNS members will note that our long-time India Editor, Rafiq Dossani, has now moved from Stanford University to the RAND Corp. Given his inside contacts in India, and his deep, on-the-ground understanding of India’s prospects and challenges, it is no surprise that RAND wanted Rafiq. Luckily for us, he is now continuing his work in sharing real insights into India’s status and workings with the rest of us.

In this Special Letter, Rafiq provides an amazingly detailed account of the internal political workings of the country that may well be the Next Big Thing in global economics. From political structures and their inherent weaknesses to the votes that matter, Rafiq has outlined the key constraints and promises that describe India’s mid-term future.

Each time I read one of Rafiq’s missives on this amazing nation, I think he can’t later out-perform himself in combining inside knowledge with pragmatic understanding of this hamstrung, exciting, fascinating nation. And then, as here, he does just that. – mra.